chrome-extension

Chrome extension

Contract

Inputs

• Required: the extension's purpose and target surfaces (which pages it acts on, which UI it shows).
• Required for publishing: store account credentials and listing assets, supplied by the human; never inferred, generated, or stored by the skill.
• Optional: existing manifest or source to extend; TypeScript/build preference; target Chrome version.

Procedure

1. Bound scope: confirm with the human whether this is a new extension, an edit to an existing one, or a store submission. Do not begin store submission unless explicitly invoked for it. Done when: the scope is confirmed as new, edit, or submission.
2. Validate inputs at their trust boundary: the required purpose and surfaces are present; any publishing credentials are human-supplied and never inferred. Stop rather than widen scope or invent evidence. Done when: required inputs are present and validated, or the missing ones are named and the run stopped.
3. Author or edit manifest.json to Manifest V3: set manifest_version: 3, name, version, and the minimal permissions for the declared surfaces. Manifest V2 is not produced. Done when: manifest.json is valid MV3 with minimal permissions.
4. Add a service worker via background.service_worker for lifecycle and event handling. Keep it stateless across suspension: persist durable state in chrome.storage, never in module-level variables. Done when: the service worker is stateless and durable state is in chrome.storage.
5. Add content scripts scoped to the declared page matches via content_scripts.matches; inject only the CSS and JS each surface needs. Done when: content scripts are scoped to declared matches with minimal injected assets.
6. Add UI surfaces as needed: action popup (action.default_popup), options page (options_ui), side panel, or devtools panel. Each surface is a separate HTML document with its own script. Done when: each needed UI surface is a separate HTML document with its own script.
7. Wire messaging with chrome.runtime.sendMessage / chrome.runtime.onMessage for popup-to-service-worker and chrome.tabs.sendMessage for service-worker-to-content-script. Treat every message as untrusted: validate shape and origin before acting. Done when: messaging is wired and every message is validated for shape and origin.
8. Choose storage by durability: chrome.storage.local for extension data, chrome.storage.session for service-worker runtime state, chrome.storage.sync for user settings. Never store secrets in chrome.storage. Done when: storage is chosen by durability and no secrets are stored.
9. Request the narrowest permissions that satisfy the surfaces; prefer optional permissions requested via chrome.permissions.request at the point of use over broad manifest-time grants. Done when: permissions are minimal, with optional permissions preferred over broad grants.
10. Enforce network and CSP: remote code is banned under MV3, so all scripts must be packaged. Declare host_permissions only for the origins the extension actually fetches. Done when: all scripts are packaged and host_permissions are scoped to actual fetch origins.
11. Mark resources the page or web context must reach (injected images, frames, or assets) under web_accessible_resources, scoped to the matching origins. Done when: web-accessible resources are declared and scoped.
12. Respect execution contexts: the service worker, the content script (page-isolated), and the page DOM are separate. Never share live objects across them; serialize through messages. Done when: execution contexts are separated and objects are serialized through messages.
13. If TypeScript is preferred, configure a build (tsc or a bundler) that emits the JS paths the manifest references; the manifest always points at built output, not source. Done when: the build emits JS paths the manifest references.
14. Debug with chrome://extensions load-unpacked and the service-worker DevTools. Check chrome.runtime.lastError after every async API call; surface lastError rather than swallowing it. Done when: the extension loads unpacked and lastError is surfaced after every async call.
15. To publish, only on explicit human invocation, package the extension by zipping the built output. Then submit it through the Chrome Web Store developer dashboard using human-supplied credentials and listing assets. The model never enters credentials or triggers the upload autonomously. Done when: the extension is packaged and submitted with human-supplied credentials, or the run stops for lack of explicit invocation.